Travel Photo Gallery – July 23, 2008

Here are some of the most compelling travel photos submitted by our listeners this week. Clark will comment on one photo each week in the Thursday Travel E-Scapes newsletter. (Subscribe.) Leave YOUR comments below!

Submitted by: Steven J.Destination: Panama City Beach, FLBest deal found: We used Priceline to purchase two nights at the Marriott golf resort for $80/night on a Sunday/Monday night in mid-June. I checked rack rates through Marriott’s website and couldn’t find anything better than $240/night. We got a steal! The photo is of our boys Ted (4) and Jack (3) on the beach at sunset.

Submitted by: Bev S.Destination: Grand CaymanBest deal found: Bev & Family @ Stingray City in Grand Cayman (btw, these rays do not kill-soft tails) Vacation dates were: 6/28 – 7/4… Booked thru Travelocity – Westin Resort was $159 per night…beautiful hotel (5 star IMO)…Everyone is smiles & no crime & excellent drinking water! Awesome food & drinks!!! Beach @ Westin was best on whole island! Best vaca ever!!! American Airlines booked tix by phone (which were cheaper than doing it online-weird) were $400 round trip. Food is a little high on island, but other stuff was priced like US (i.e., bathing suits, diving, clothing). You can do the grocery store if you want get cheap food cost & take bus ($2) to get anywhere instead of a cab. Renting cars is only around $30 US. The big catamaran that took us to Stingray City for 5 hrs was only $40/per person-Cool experience *GO NOW WHILE THE SEASON IS OFF & HURRICANES ARE NIL*

Submitted by: Gary M.Destination: Budapest, HungaryBest deal found: Riding the funicular to the cliffs of Buda offer a spectacular view of the Chain Bridge and Pest in the back. Budapest is still one of the best buys in Europe. A very walkable city and they also have an inexpensive Metro system. Don’t forget the park in the middle of the Danube.

Submitted by: Pat D.Destination: Amalfi Coastline, Southern Italy and SicilyBest deal found: All inclusive tour included transportation, sights and food. I travelled with Cosmos Budget Tours and thought that the price of the land tour was in line with the services that were provided . The people, sights, hotels, restaurants, food were phenomenal. Traveled to Rome, Pompeii, Isle of Capri, Sorrento, and Sicily. Had a fantastic trip and would highly recommend it. Thanks, Pat

Submitted by: Matt G.Destination: OttawaBest deal found: Hotel stay at the Westin for $130/night (conference rate)–great service & great location! Photo is of Ottawa from the 23rd floor balcony of the Westin Hotel.

Submitted by: Dianne H.Destination: WalesBest deal found: Best deal on this trip was plane fare and car rental through Hotwire.

Submitted by: Andy P.Destination: IsraelBest deal found: Walking through the Old City of Jerusalem, its free. Just walk through the back streets and get lost. Its amazing what you will see.

Submitted by: April B.Destination: Branson, MissouriBest deal found: This picture was taken in Dogwood Canyon about 45 minutes from downtown Branson. This is a beautiful nature reserve with hiking, biking, tram ride and horseback riding. Stay away from all the timeshare deals in Branson. Your best bet is buy ahead on internet or get local free coupon book in area hotels and shops.

Submitted by: John O.Destination: Yellowstone National ParkBest deal found: The entrance fee to Yellowstone was only $20.00 for a seven day pass. In my opinion this is a great deal. However, the worst deal I got was at the Old Faithful Guyser Gift Shop snack bar where I paid $20 for the smallest Bar-B-Q sandwich I have ever had, and a Roast Beef or should I say Roast Grissle sandwich. Both were horrible, stay away from that snack bar.

Submitted by: Leta L.Destination: Atlanta, GABest deal found: Staying & visiting with my son & his family while in Atlanta. The Aquarium was fascinating to us, and I thought this was a rather unique photo.

Submitted by: Jane B.Destination: London, EnglandBest deal found: This is “Little Venice” in London, just north of the city, at the Paddington tube stop. It is a great place to walk and wander. There are a couple of pubs for a bite of lunch or a pint. It’s quite picturesque. Clark would love it because it is FREE! Well, there’s the cost of the tube ride and the pint, that’s really cheap for London!

Submitted by: Heather H..Destination: Pebble Beach, CABest deal found: It was FREE from AM750! I won this trip last year from you all and it was the best vacation ever! Thanks so much, Heather.

Submitted by: Nettie M.Destination: The Island of BarbadosBest deal found: The cost and value of the 7 days cruise (Canival-Destiny) to the Southern Caribbean islands. The service and food was excellent!

Submitted by: Diane H.Destination: Estes Park, ColoradoBest deal found: Our family went to Estes Park, Co for my nephews wedding in October 2007. The picture of these elk were literally standing on the corner about 25 feet from us, with a busy intersection just behind me. We stayed in the Solitude Cabins, Estes Park, CO & they were new & beautiful! The rate was $155 per night with 2 master suites & the accomodations were perfect! I would high recommend everyone to experience this cabin & Estes Park!

Submitted by: Linda T.Destination: Kenai, AlaskaBest deal found: This picture of stellar sea lions was taken in the Kenai Fjords National park. The long boat cruise was a great deal and worth every bit of money we spent for it there. We saw more wildlife and sea life there than in Denali Nat. Park.

Submitted by: Tom R.Destination: ItalyBest deal found: I spent 20 days in Italy, visiting 19 towns. Total price for air line, hostel, and food was only, 2326.00. If not for the week dollar, would have only been 1722.00 Travel on public transportation is very cheep, for the 20 days in Italy I only spent 234.00. I traveled from Rome, to Siena, to Venice and all points between. Air line, from SFO to Rome and back, total was 722.00. Sweet deal, and great time in May, 08

Submitted by: Christopher O.Destination: Mackinaw Island, MIBest deal found: The whole thing was a great deal. The weather was beautiful and there was hardly anyone on the island. Probably because of the economic woes in Michigan. It felt like the off-season but with the beautiful weather. Usually, the island is packed with people but when we were there, there were people but not a crowded mess it’s been in the past. The best deals were all the shops where they were giving deep discounts because they needed to sell. So there were 20 – 60% discounts which never happens during the regular season. You only see that in the off-season. So Mackinaw Island is a great place to go, we had a great time and got so many good deals that we spent MORE money than usual. But well worth it.

Submitted by: Bonnie H.Destination: AlaskaBest deal found: I didn’t find any “best deals”– it was and expensive trip. I guess if I had to give a best deal it would be my flight from Atlanta to Anchorage on Frontier for $549 round trip.

Submitted by: Diane H.Destination: Providentiales, Turks & Caicos Islands, B.W.I.Best deal found: My husband & I & my sister and brother in law vacationed here. The house is a 3 bedroom / 2 bath vacation home on the beach in the caribbean, with our own private pool in the back yard and the private beach only steps from the home down a sandy path. This picture was taken rom the pool area looking out toward the ocean with a beautiful sunset. The house was $2200.00 per week & was worth every penny!

Submitted by: Rebecca F.Destination: Costa RicaBest deal found: A crocodile on a river bank outside of Jaco, Costa Rica. Shortly after seeing this croc, we were stopped by the policia and it only cost us twenty dollars to get out of a ticket for not having our passports with us.

Submitted by: Linda P.Destination: Port Elizabeth, South AfricaBest deal found: Shopping with this gentleman. Everything was handmade and fairly priced. The people were all as welcoming as this man was!

Submitted by: Theresa M.Destination: BarbadosBest deal found: Our hotel offered a FREE cooked to order breakfast until noon. We enjoyed a late breakfast and a cheap dinner… all in all, the whole trip cost us under $1000 for two of us for 7 days… That was airfare and hotel (and breakfast)!!

…and now, the further adventures of Dana F. and his 1976 bicentennial Appalachian Trail hike! Submitted by: Dana F.Destination: Appalachian TrailBest deal found: Here we are [skin (on the right) and bones (on the left)] at the official halfway point of the Appalachian Trail. Notice the official sign. We saved a lot of money in clothing.

Here I am balancing a tree on my head. The white paint on the tree is used to mark the Appalachian Trail so we wouldn’t get lost. There were a couple of times though… Anyway, we saved a lot of money on entertainment.